The Sword Stained with Royal Blood (1981)
"Bi xie jian" (original title)

Director:

Cheh Chang

Writers:

Louis Cha (novel), Cheh Chang,

Stars:

Philip Kwok, Hsueh-erh Wen, Tien Hsiang Lung

Cast

Credited cast:
Philip Kwok	...	Yuan Cheng-chih (as Kuo Chui)
Hsueh-erh Wen	...	Wen Ching-Ching
Tien Hsiang Lung	...	Chin She Liang-Chun
Sheng Chiang	...	Wen Cheng
Feng Lu	...	Wen Nan-yang
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Shen Chan	...	Chief of Lung Yau School
Yung Chan
Chiang-yu Chang
Lien-hui Chang
Kuo Chao
Hung Chen
Han Chiang
Li Ching	...	Wen Yi
Ke Chu
Tiet Wo Chu

Storyline

---

Plot Keywords:

wuxia fiction | based on novel

---

Genres:

Action | Drama

---

Details

Country:

Hong Kong

Language:

Mandarin

Release Date:

6 March 1981 (Hong Kong)

Also Known As:

The Sword Stained with Royal Blood

Company Credits

Production Co:

Shaw Brothers

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Connections

Version of Bik hue gim (1985)

User Reviews

mostly uplifting film, though tedious at times

Like most kung fu films, we lose a lot in translation, but we get the gist of a young hero learning ways to fight powerful evil people.

Here, we're not sure for a while who the evil ones will be. In fact, the hero is played by an actor who often plays bad guys.

Here, he is a very likable chap, and he meets a girl who is very stubborn and has a bad temper. That's what makes the film as good as it is. The two leads are very charming and charismatic.

The acrobatics and constant gymnastics are what often become tedious in these films. Here, they are more than tedious. We stick through this crazy choreography, though, because of the charisma of the two lead characters.

Fortunately, although our hero ends up having to fight 5 kung fu artists by himself, he is not totally alone, as two family members are there to make sure the "henchmen" don't interfere. They have a brief battle of their own. A mute servant also adds to the appeal, as does some very stylistic settings, including a cave of danger with an Indiana Jones atmosphere.

All in all, very watchable, although the tedious fight scenes are a bit of a drag. In this film, it is the drama in between that salvages it.